Designing for humans, not hypotheticals

Zoe Mercado

June 01, 2025

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1 min read

With a background in psychology and human-computer interaction, I bring a unique lens to product design that centers empathy, equity, and evidence.

Product Designer & Storyteller

Currently redesigning picoCTF's cybersecurity learning platform for 800K+ users.

Previously, I led P0 research at Figma that directly influenced 20+ mind mapping features for millions of users.

Image of Zoe Mercado and colleague writing on the wall

Giving a presentation in front of a project screen titled "we had 120 ideas"

Zoe on phone side by side with blown up mockup

picoCTF team sitting at table smiling playing a card game

Zoe presenting designs at the XHacks competition

Zoe pointing to wall artifacts surrounded by colleagues

Trusted by teams at

Latest ideas and project highlights

Step into my design approach

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Bumble thumbnail image of watch and mobile mockups

Meetup concept to safely bring matches together with ethical location design.

Product Design

Case Study:

LEGO city race challenge mockup with cards blown up on the side

Transformational game commissioned by LEGO® for Allegheny County middle schools.

Product Design | Game Design

client:

Woman pointing to screen with UI blown up to the side

Wayfinding solution increasing guest flow from hotel lobby to upper galleries.

Product Design

Case Study:

What MY COLLEAGUES are saying

Stories from recent collaborations

Working with Zoe was a total privilege from Day 1. She ramped up quickly on the context of what we were building and why, wasn't afraid to ask questions and get involved, and did really excellent work.

Image of Conor Woods with Figma theme (sticky notes and smiley face)

Conor Woods

Product Manager at Figma (2023)

Latest from the blog

Stories, strategies, and lessons from real projects

A screenshot of the blog post card

Discover PianoProse, a novel piano text entry method for users with motor impairments.

Story preview of "Emotion Detection and Facial Recognition to Mitigate AI Bias" with lo-fi mockup

Gamified tool for Millennial & Gen Z professionals, using psychology to reduce distraction and restore focus.